 Why does it seem like the church today has no standards? Well, because it's true. The church, by and large, does not have standards. And some would say, Corey, why would you even say that? Well, just look around. Look at the church, look at society, look at the church's influence on society. For example, the Bible has a standard about women being pastors, but look around, we see more and more of the pastor becoming women. The Bible has a standard on sexual morality, particularly the LGBTQ community, but what do we see now? More and more Christians are embracing the LGBTQ community or at the very least, LGBTQ affirming. We've got pastors who are doing just that. Jesus speaks an awful lot about hell in his word, but we've got pastors who don't even affirm that and would say that hell is something that's been made up by man or at least something that was created by man. That clearly is not true according to his word. God's word is our standard. That is what we've been given to live by. It is what we have to thoroughly equip us that we will be lacking absolutely nothing, but be complete. We know by and large the church is lacking in standards because we've got people who proclaim to be preachers or teachers of the word who will make up statements and say things like, well, because the Bible didn't say so, doesn't mean that it isn't so. The Bible doesn't say we can't be slain in the spirit. Therefore, we can be slain in the spirit. The Bible doesn't say that Christians can't have demons. Therefore, Christians can have demons. The Bible doesn't say that there won't be any more apostles. Therefore, we can have apostles. Since the Bible doesn't specifically say that prophets or people who presume to speak a word for the Lord, they don't have to be 100%. Therefore, we don't have to be 100% in our prophecies. The Bible has standards that people simply just don't want to adhere to. It's as though they want to make it up themselves and essentially be their own gods. You hear this term where people say, don't put God in a box. The problem is we're told not to make a God of our own makings, you know, a guy that looks like you, a guy that is progressive as you are, a guy that is as conservative as you are, a guy that is immoral as you are. Yet that kind of got one that looks and thinks and acts exactly like you. Now, this isn't new, lest we forget in the Bible, Satan had the exact same thought or the exact same designs on impugning God's standard, which is his word. Remember in the garden, he says to Eve, did God say? Well, Eve did on her account, did rebut and say God did say, but what did he say? What did the enemy say? That's not what the word means. That's not exactly what God means because in that day, you will be like him knowing good and evil. And what are we today? Knowing good, but even more so, certainly knowing evil. We've got people who will sell us something, who will tell us something knowing it's not in the scriptures who will lie before us, but we don't care. We've got people who say they have the gift of healing. Meanwhile, people in their own congregation are sick. A person claiming to have the Holy Spirit in them full of the spirit, having the ability to heal, they themselves having heart disease. Or another famous pastor tell everyone that the gift of healing is appropriate and we all should exercise that gift. Meanwhile, his own wife dies of cancer. Again, imagine a preacher claiming to be some great healer and everyone around him is sick. Sort of like saying you have the ability to cast out demons and everywhere you go, even in your church, everyone has demons. And to prove that they are true, they'll put on some sort of theatrical show, the worst act you can imagine. All the while, the people with no standard, meaning the Bible, holding that in high view. All the while, they'll eat it up and believe it. Why? Because Paul made this statement. In the last day, people will not endure the sound doctrine, but because of the desires of their heart, their itching ears, what they wanna see, they'll find people to teach and to say what they want to hear. People will get them to see that they're not responsible for themselves. It's some demon. It's some sort of outside spirit. It's the spirit of, you name it, spirit of Leviathan, spirit of Python, spirit of this, spirit of that. Everything has a spirit. The demon of fear of losing a job. The demon of fear of getting married. The demon of fear of getting sick. Come out right now. Come out right now. Addiction to pop, bedwetting, addiction to habitual lip biting, in the name of Jesus, compulsion, knuckle cracking, tantrums and fits, thumb sucking. But what happened to the Holy Spirit who gave us his word? But now it's not just one side of the aisle that should be impugned because there are a lot of even more conservative people who have the same problem. Not holding to the standard, the word of God. In other words, what his word says is what it is. When a charismatic name spears that aren't mentioned in the Bible, he claims powers and he claims titles that aren't mentioned in the Bible. He claims to be something that he's not. What's the difference from a conservative person claiming to be the new Israel? Do I think we ought to love them because they're Israel? No, because I believe that the church is the true, real, new Israel. And in some cases, just outright replacing Israel altogether with the church. You may as well be a Hebrew-Israelite. If you're going to hold to Sola Scriptura, well, then hold to Sola Scriptura. Let what the scriptures say be the final authority. Do not read into it. Do not spiritualize, do not allegorize. Let the plain reading be plain enough for us plain everyday people. But no wonder the world is confused. The church is confused. And if we don't hold to a standard, then why should the world hold to a standard? We tell people that God can forgive all of our sins unless we sin. We tell people that you have been saved from the penalty of sin that is until you sin again. But that's not what the Bible says. Jesus is clear that all that have been given to him, he will not lose one. That's what the scriptures say. And yes, the Bible does warn people to make sure they are his. Guess what that means? Make sure you are his. That's the point of the warning passages. But if he is a God that doesn't have power over us, power over our lives, power over demons, then what kind of God is he? What does the Holy Spirit do? The fact of the matter is, we are not listening to the very words that were given to us as a standard by the very Holy Spirit that we claim to embrace and to trust in. We claim to have these powers from the Holy Spirit, these spiritual gifts, but how selfish are we? We are so selfish that we will take these spiritual gifts that were intended to edify the body. We will turn around and use those very same spiritual gifts as to edify ourselves. When the Bible is clear that we are not to edify ourselves, but to edify the body. Again, the word is a standard, but we don't care. And since we don't care about his standard because we are so selfish, look at the world emulate us. Now, it's okay to be wrong. We're all going to be wrong about something. The problem is we can be wrong about something and don't want to be shown that. We're not willing to talk to each other about our differences. Instead, what we will do is we'll name, call, we'll run and hide and block people. It's not to say that it's wrong to call a person out for a sin or to call out a bad doctor. What is wrong is to do so and then not talk to the person whom you're calling out or refuse to talk to the person to simply throw a rock and then run and hide. That's not godly at all. Remember, we've not been given the spirit of fear but a spirit of power, of sound mind. A man that will defend himself rather than defend his doctrine rather than defend the word of God is not a man of God. But this actually makes sense. This is what the Bible refers to as the great falling away. Not of actual Christians leaving but people who profess to be Christians who are falling away from the actual teachings from the doctrine. They're not falling away from having faith. They're falling away from the faith from what the true faith teaches. This is what Paul says in his dying days. He said he has kept, he has held the faith, the doctrine, the teachings. Meaning it's important for us to do the exact same thing. Hold to that same standard. But since we don't, this is why we see people in droves leaving that faith. People who profess to be Christians who we are finding out that they absolutely are not, they are leaving or deconstructing and then causing others to do so. Why? Because we don't hold to a standard. Why should they? And the more that we don't hold to sound doctrine, the more that we don't hold to his standard, the more we see the world going down as well. Peter makes a statement on this subject. He says, Our job as believers is to share the love of God with others. Not with ourselves. He goes on to say in verse 10, In other words, one who is speaking the word of God. You know, that same standard. Whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies so that in all things God might be glorified through Jesus Christ. What's happening in the world is not something that we should be surprised or shocked about. Though there are tons and tons of videos that say this is shocking. This is surprising. No, the Bible is clear if we just read his word. Notice what he says in the next verse. Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you which comes upon you for your testing as though some strange thing were happening to you. But to the degree that you are sharing in the suffering of Christ keep on rejoicing so that also at the revelation of his glory you may rejoice with exultation. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed because the spirit of glory and of God rest on you. Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer or thief or evildoer or troublesome meddler but if anyone suffers as a Christian he is not to be ashamed but it is to glorify God in this name. So we are going to suffer. There's gonna be some issues but there should not be any suffering because we are sinning as a murderer, as an evildoer. That's the point. But now notice what he says here for it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God. And if it begins with us first that will be the outcome of those who do not obey the gospel of God. In other words, judgment starts with us. Yes, us, those who are supposed to uphold the standard of God, the word of God. And then he asks what will be the outcome of those who do not obey the word of God? Again, his standard. It's possible that I may have misjudged the church. How so? Because maybe who I'm referring to aren't people who are actually part of the church. They just go to church. Going to church does not make you a part of the church. And now that kind of makes sense because the people who would much rather listen to their opinions or others' opinions rather than the word of God have shown that they don't value the word of God. And who doesn't value the word of God? You know, his standard, his mighty word. People who aren't actually Christians to begin with. So maybe the people who would rather listen to somebody give some sort of fake sign, some sort of fake miracle, who's looking for a sign and a miracle to begin with, someone who would rather listen to someone else's experience rather than the word of God, maybe they aren't Christians after all.